categorically so.
seek/ye shall find.

find me here, as a sheep

 


 

 

 

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Madsen Cycles Cargo Bikes

Tuesday
Mar302010

sunday bee excursion

an experiment in oneness...

...a more consistent connection to nature...

...a hedonistic, ever-present greed for more honey....

...call it what you will...

...the sunday bee-ginnings for research [ok, fine, bee-search] for a certain local-to-me 1-hived apiary was nothing less than a splendid, near-stormy, sunday morning jaunt.

thxx bees by the bay for the visit! more soonish...

[all images copyright 2010 anc.]

Thursday
Mar252010

all mylar-y + happy-making + what-not(s)

Had a lovely + striking studio-visit with one, Christine Buckton Tillman in her upper-floor home studio.

With no commute necessary, Christine is typically able to muster at least 5-10 studio hours/weekly...even if in morning-pockets pre- her local art-teaching gig [high school level]. Finding daily/intermittent-[if even tidbitted]-studio work both fruitful + fulfilling, she draws inspiration from a varied assortment.  There is the ever-present enthusiasm and intriguing teenage drama from her students, material play from party supplies [think of the potential + inherent joy in this disposable happiness!] + daily things seen + sometimes [for the good] reinterpreted.

With a painting + drawing background, and a general love of materials [especially party-supplies], coupled with professional practice in sculpture; inspirational 2 + 3D compositions abound within day to day findings. Like when frequenting a favored party favor aisle/store- the display rack of streamers transforms into a giddy-making pattern of [rolled] colored dots along a wall.

Many of Christine's drawings are anchored in grid + color- [a technique with a history surprisingly-hilarious :: a stress-injury to the all-important knitting/drawing-hand turns out to have been caused by frequent + badly-formed high-fives-- thus causing her to shift to less-hand-intensive-methods].  The ability to neatly consolidate colors and yet stretch borders created by the artist herself yields calmly-chaotic + tangibly-there drawings ::

All of her works, forms being rather assorted-in-nature, are all parts of a whole. Noting her works as "making objects about happy," this is visibly apparent- across the board.

Visiting her studio revealed some pretty great and inspired findings ::

a healthy obsession with faux-wood-grain ["faux bois," a la martha] contact paper [how very top shelf (!)] ::

some re-iterations of party-themed goodness [made for a v. happening [work]space] ::

 

grouped and less-told arrangements of her drawings create potential-noveau-gallery-walls ::

the growing collection of in-process plaid-ed [swoon] + hand-woven mylar [1 square completed per week] squares [below] to yield a soon-to-be-madras something...inspired by the below-below ::

fun process + evidence of an awesome collaboration with photographer Terry Lansburgh

be a victim of the happy-making + buy all-things christine buckton tillman here.

Friday
Mar122010

Hasselback Potatoes with Roasted Garlic Yogurt + Red Onion Jalapeno Confit

the amazing phil kerrigan from six course dinner is back in action and helping us with this wondrous transition to spring...not before he gets one last affair with winterish foods out of the way...take it away, pk...photo courtesy of phil kerrigan//six course dinnerWinter is rapidly winding down to a close. (We get to change our clocks this weekend!) And, as with every year, I find myself both welcoming the warmer weather and fresh vegetables as much as I dread saying goodbye to all the warming comfort foods of winter. So this year, instead of putting those comfort foods away until the temperatures take a nose dive again, I've decided to adapt some of them for year-round enjoyment. With so many winter staples to choose from, it is hard to know where to start, but the humble baked potato seems like a good idea. Instead of just tossing Idaho's best into an oven before smothering it with sour cream and chives, here we have finely (almost) sliced Yukon Gold potatos, roasted garlic goats milk yogurt, and some tangy-sweet red onion and jalapeno confit. Shredded cheddar and crumble bacon need not apply.


2 Yukon Gold potatoes
4 tbsp olive oil
1 head of garlic
half of a red onion
1 jalapeno, seeds removed
1 cup pomegranate juice
2 tbsp balsamic reduction
1 tbsp butter
1/4 cup goats milk yogurt
fresh thyme
fresh parsley, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
Preheat oven to 400F. While the oven is heating up, carefully slice potatoes every 1/8th of an inch, only going about 3/4 of the way down. (Two dowels on either side of the potato will help you cut to the right depth without going through). Place the potatoes in salted water until ready to roast. In a cast iron skillet, heat 3 tbsp of olive oil over low heat with several sprigs of thyme.photo courtesy of phil kerrigan//six course dinner When the oil takes on the flavor of the thyme, remove the herbs from the skillet. Drain the potatoes well, and coat the potatoes in the oil thoroughly. Sprinkle with a little salt and pepper and move cast iron pan to the oven. Also, slice the top third off of a head of garlic, removing excess papery skin, drizzle with olive oil and wrap in aluminum foil.photo courtesy of phil kerrigan//six course dinner Place in the oven alongside the cast iron pan. Roast both for about 40 minutes or until tender. Meanwhile, slice the red onion lengthwise into thin slivers. Heat butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Saute onions, but do not let them turn brown. Add the pomegranate juice, sliced jalapeno, and balsamic reduction (that you made yourself, right?) and lower the heat to a slow simmer. Gently simmer until almost all the juice is absorbed and the onions are very tender.photo courtesy of phil kerrigan//six course dinner Season with salt and pepper and reserve. Remove the potatoes and garlic from the oven when they are done. Carefully remove the garlic from the aluminum foil and allow to cool for a minute before squeezing the now soft cloves into a bowl. Gently mash with a fork and stir in the goats milk yogurt. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon over potatoes. Serve with the confit and garnish with parsley.